e-spaces

Image is very important in retail from eye wear to shoes and if a company can get people to own their brands they have then achieved the status icon. Products like clothing and accessories have achieved this very well, retailers have to a much lesser degree.

It’s a lot harder for retailers to get customers to own their brands; there is status in wearing brands like Nike or Diesel not so with no name brands. Today people have branded themselves with the products they most perceive to reflect their lifestyles, thoughts and ideas. However there are other areas retailers can evoke the consumer’s conscience in today’s experiential economy. (The Experience Economy by Pine and Gilmore.)

A retail brand by definition is a collection of images and experiences more specifically; it refers to the descriptive attributes and concrete symbols such as a name, logo, slogan, jingle, and most importantly a design scheme that conveys the essence of the company.

A brand is a symbolic embodiment of all the information connected to a company and the accumulation of experiences that create associations and also expectations among customers.

Retail design concepts need to include color schemes, sounds, smells and a look and feel that develops implicit values, ideas, and personality. The key objective is to create a relationship of meaning with their customers. Brands need to stay current and relevant, keeping abreast with the latest trends and technology advances that will keep them in a relationship with customers. For retail today it’s never just going to be about selling a product or products anymore. Consumers want much more from your brand.

In (Brand Sense by Martin Lindstrom), he notes how very few brands world wide have used the five senses to create brand loyalty. (Benjamin Franklin) said “Tell me and I’ll forget, show me and I might remember, involve me and I’ll understand.” In any relationship, involvement is commitment and commitment in retail is brand loyalty.

Too often in retail branding, only the look and feel are taken into account and no thought is given when it comes to the other senses. Sensory branding is not new and there are companies in South Africa that specialize in it. Specific brand aromas are created with essential oils based on descriptors that allow customers to associate that specific smell with that particular brand. Yet can you think of one single retail brand that has a specific smell that gives you any experience or evokes any emotion?

The human conscience can also be used in retail branding and will become more and more important. Social and environmental consciousness and responsibility, very soon will be the cornerstone of branding. Organic, recycled, friendly and giving meaningfully back into communities will be paramount to future retailer’s brand sustainability.

Woolworths recently won an international award for being a responsible retailer. They have come far, however there is much more to be done. There are products, systems and technology available that will further enhance brands, which have not been integrated into brands yet. Yes there are pricing and logistic issues at the moment but as demand meets supply; prices and suppliers will increase and the price issue will become less of a hurdle.   

Any retailer that in the future is not assisting their consumers with recycling, using environmentally unfriendly packaging and providing products that will affect their customers health adversely, will see the negative affect on their brands.

Retail brands need to channel marketing spending to meaningful projects that enhance and add meaning to their customer’s lives. Whose brand will benefit more; one that spends millions on rebranding making statements that mean nothing to their customers or the other that puts that money back into the community?

Putting the customer’s experiences above all other priorities, like costs and slow implementation are also going to be brand busters, in South Africa local retailers are followers and laggards in marketing terms. They are more concerned about what it costs than what it will do to improve customer experience and therefore brand loyalty. There are products and technology available that will improve queuing time, remove more expensive products from locked cabinets and reward customers for recycling in or outside stores.

Most South African retail brands adopt a wait and see attitude. Let someone else try it first and see if it works. How is that building a brand?

Building and sustaining a retail brand today entails going back to basic marketing principles in an exponentially changing consumer environment. Having relevant products at the best price, on time in an environment that creates an experience.

Your retail brand needs to be relevant to today’s and tomorrow’s customers. Consumers today are more advanced, and have a lot more tools available to make better choices. Remember they are your guests treat them that way and you will have a relationship!